by Jane Jamison
The boss man snagged the poor man’s hair and jerked his head up. He leaned closer, a horrible scowl on his lips. “I’m tired of this. Tell me now.”
“Boss, please, don’t.”
The evil man straightened up. She watched in horror as his face began to change.
Fur spread over his rough skin, covering the lines in his face. His eyes, as awful as they were before, took on a red gleam that sent cold spikes stabbing into her flesh. His ears elongated, growing larger with pointed ends. But it was his teeth, his stained human teeth that struck pure terror into her.
His teeth grew, becoming larger with dangerous-looking sharp pointed ends like those of a killer shark. They glistened in the dim light of the one bulb hanging from a cord from the ceiling. As she watched, unable to move, unable to cry out, the boss opened his mouth and exposed his more of his fangs.
“Please, boss. I don’t…” The captive man’s pleas deteriorated into wordless, anguished sounds.
“No one steals from me.” Opening his mouth wider, the boss man who had mutated into a monster, yanked the man forward and sank his fangs into his throat.
He couldn’t scream. He no longer had a voice to scream with.
Blood shot out, spurting on the evil man as well as the other three, but they didn’t flinch. When the monster lifted his head again, his mouth held part of the man’s throat in it. He shook his head and let the bloody mess fly.
She gasped, then froze as the man turned his blazing red gaze onto her.
Lace opened her eyes and threw off the comforter. Moaning, she dashed toward the bedroom door. The sound of the men still arguing below got louder as she took the steps as fast as she could.
At the bottom of the stairs, she turned to the left, then to the right and found Zack and Chan facing each other, their feet planted apart, their attention on each other. She ran into the living room, came to a stop and stared.
No. Please. No.
Chapter Five
Zack withdrew his fangs, pulling them back into his gums in less than two seconds. Chan did the same, then pivoted to face Lace. They’d been arguing about his changing into a crow and watching her right after he’d told Chan to leave her alone. Although he agreed with Chan that it was the exact opposite of what he’d said, he wouldn’t apologize. He could’ve no more resisted watching her than he could’ve stopped breathing.
“Lace, we didn’t hear you come downstairs.”
Zack almost groaned at Chan’s lack of subtlety. Why not just ask her if she’d seen them growling at each other? She looked almost as shell shocked as when he’d picked her up off the side of the road. “Lace? Are you all right?”
Only then did she manage to close her mouth. “It can’t be.”
He gave Chan a look that urged his friend to take over. Although he could handle himself in tough situations, Chan was the one who had the best chance of calming her down. Whatever Chan said, he’d go along with.
Chan understood the unspoken message and went for it. “Hey, baby, come on in and sit down.”
Not surprisingly, she backed away from his advance. “No.” Her breast heaved as she dragged in each breath. “You were…I saw…”
She lifted her hand and pointed toward Chan’s mouth. If Zack had any doubt that she’d seen their fangs, that alone proved that she had. The only questions were how long had she seen them and could they talk her out of believing what she’d seen?
Chan moved fast, taking her firmly by the arm while still talking to her in a calm, soothing voice. “Did we wake you up? I’m sorry about that. Sometimes we get loud when we’re trying to work things out.”
She studied them, jumping her gaze from one to the other. “Your teeth.”
Chan chuckled. “My teeth? Are you trying to say I have something caught in my teeth?” He ran his tongue along the front of his teeth.
She jerked his hand off her then took her thumbs to the corners of his mouth and pushed, forcing him to form a grotesque smile. But it wasn’t his smile she was interested in. She was trying to find the fangs she’d seen.
They’d have to be more careful while she was in the house. At least until they decided to tell her the truth. Then he’d show her his fangs all she wanted.
“You had fangs.”
Chan hated to lie. Zack was all too aware of that, but what other choice did he have?
“Baby, are you sure you’re all right?” Chan led her to the couch and sat down, bringing her along with him. If Zack had been the one to make her sit down, he would’ve had her plopping down on his lap instead of the cushion.
Tears sprang to her eyes which made her shaken appearance even harder to take. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m still messed up. When I heard you two fighting, it made me think about…” She put her head in her hands. “No. I can’t go there.”
Chan pulled her closer and let her lay her head against his chest. His face was a reflection of the torment storming inside Zack. “It’s okay, baby. We’re here for you. And we weren’t really fighting. We were just squabbling like kids do. We’re sorry it upset you.”
Chan was right. It wasn’t really a fight. When they fought, they brought out their claws as well as their fangs. It was a good thing that they didn’t fight often.
He wanted to come to her other side, but decided that might be too much for her to handle. Instead, he moved toward the bar. “Does anyone want a drink?”
She sniffed and gave him a strange look. “In the morning?”
He poured a liberal amount of vodka in a glass then reached into the mini-refrigerator behind the bar and got the Bloody Mary mix out. He poured it in then mixed in a few other ingredients like Tabasco sauce and pepper to give it a solid kick. “We don’t drink in the morning much, but I think you could use some liquid strength right now.”
“Or we could get some champagne and orange juice for a mimosa, if that’s more to your liking.”
Zack gritted his teeth. As usual, Chan was going for the more expensive option. There was nothing wrong with a plain old Bloody Mary so why try and fancy it up? Hopefully, she was a girl after his own heart. One who would enjoy the simple things in life.
“No thanks. I’ll take the Bloody Mary, please.”
Zack held back the satisfied smirk he wanted to give Chan as he crossed the room to hand her the drink. To smirk would be childish even if it would’ve felt really good.
She sat up and took a long sip, then sighed. “I’m not upset at hearing you guys argue. I think the shouting may have triggered a memory.”
“Hey, then that’s a good thing, right?” Chan rubbed her back.
As much as Zack wanted to touch her, he resisted. Too much attention might make her nervous and that was the last thing they needed to do. He closed his eyes. He could think of a lot of things he wanted to do to her, and even to make her nervous. But nervous in a different way. A vision of her with leather wrapped around her wrists and neck hit him and he almost changed his mind.
Later. Once she calms down, then maybe I’ll make it happen.
If she was the one for them, then she’d feel it, too, and welcome them with open arms. And spread legs. “What did you recall?”
She took another sip. “Nothing major like my last name or anything from my life. Instead, it was kind of like I was watching an old movie, but I was one of the actors. This man”—she swallowed hard—“this awful, evil-looking man was torturing another man who he thought stole his money. He had thugs helping him, but it wasn’t until he killed the man that I got really upset.”
“Sure. I can see why that upset you.” Chan continued to rub her back.
“But that wasn’t the worst of it.” She let out a sob then brought the back of her hand to her mouth to stifle the sound.
“Go on. Telling us will help.” Or at least Zack hoped it would.
“The worst part was when the man changed. He had terrible red eyes and”—she glanced at both of them, peering at them as though searching—“long, vicious fangs.”
Chan gave him a questioning look, no doubt thinking the same thing. Had she daydreamed about a monster? Or had she actually seen a paranormal creature in her past?
“Then he leaned forward and—oh shit.”
“Go on, baby.”
“He leaned forward and ripped the man’s throat out.”
* * * *
It felt good to get it out. Maybe then she could stop shaking. Lace laughed a high-pitched sound.
“Wow, am I a mess, or what? You didn’t know you picked up not only a stranded woman, but a crazy one, did you?”
Zack took her empty glass and turned away, not making her feel any better. Chan, on the other hand, was quick to shake his head and attempt to put her at ease.
“You’re not crazy. You’re just going through a rough patch right now. Still, like we’ve said before, we’re here for you.”
Something cracked apart inside her like a wall she hadn’t known existed. She didn’t know what had happened in her past, but her soul recognized that she’d longed to hear those words all her life. “But why? You don’t know me from a hole in the wall.”
Chan took her hand. “Yeah we do. Not in the way most people know each other with common associates or being part of a family. We know you in here.” He put his palm over his heart.
She expected Zack to moan at Chan’s romantic notion. Instead, she found him watching them intently as though Chan was telling her exactly the right thing.
“You know how sometimes you meet a person and you just click? Like you’ve known them all your life, but you only just met?”
“Yeah, I guess so. I’m not sure I’ve ever experienced it before, but I’ve heard other people talk about it.”
“Well, that’s how Zack and I feel.”
She turned to Zack again, and once more, expected him to either laugh or object. He did neither.
“Lace, I know this is hitting you hard and fast, but I’m glad that we’re talking about it. Jump in here anytime, Zack.”
Zack cleared his throat but remained standing. She would’ve loved to have him on the other side of her. In fact, getting caught between the two of them would be wonderful.
“Yeah. He’s right. Don’t worry about anything. We’ve got your back.”
Was that all he meant? That he would protect her? Not the other thing about knowing her? She had to take the chance that he felt the way Chan did. “I…feel the same way.”
Chan’s face lit up and she imagined she saw the glimmer of a smile on Zack’s. “That’s great, baby.” He pulled her to him, crushing his mouth to hers.
Lace only had enough time to inhale and then she was lost in his embrace. Answering the kiss with a fervor of her own, she fell against him and sighed when he wrapped his arms around her. His tongue ravished her mouth and she sucked, wanting to keep it there forever.
She felt safe with them, but it was so much more. She wanted them more than she’d have thought she’d ever want anything. Having them, giving herself to them was the one thing she was certain of. If she knew nothing else, it was that.
Zack moved behind her, sandwiching her between them. His hands gripped her buttocks, then moved under the T-shirt she’d worn to sleep in. She smiled into Chan’s kiss as Zack found that she didn’t have any underwear on. His fingers skimmed over her skin until his thumbs slid down the crevice between her butt cheeks.
Chan clutched her hair and held him to her. Breaking the kiss, he feathered his kisses over her cheek and down her neck. His teeth nibbled along her flesh.
Bite me.
She thrust the errant thought away. It was ridiculous to have such an idea. Instead, she stopped thinking, giving her mind over to the sensations coursing through her body.
Chan lifted the shirt over her head and tossed it away. His heated gaze took her naked breasts in then slid down to the V between her legs. “Baby, I’ve wanted you from the first second I saw you in the tub.”
Zack slid his hands around to take her breasts and earned a snarl from Chan. “Take it easy, man. I saw her first, but you know I’ll share.”
She arched, pushing her breasts against his palms. “Both of you? I can have both of you?”
Chan took her chin and forced her to look at him. “Baby, you already do.”
Zack took her by the chin, too, and made her look his way. “If you want us, really want us—”
“I do.” It was true. She wanted them more than she’d ever wanted anything. It was as crazy as everything else that had happened to her, and yet, it made the most sense. In the short time they’d been together, they’d grown close. Close enough to want to grow even closer.
“No. Don’t say that until you know it all. Baby, if you want us, you have to submit to us.”
“Submit how?” She wasn’t sure what he meant, but she knew she’d do whatever he wanted. It was both exciting and frightening, but she knew that they’d never hurt her. They’d had enough chances to do so already. Instead, they were offering her the comfort she longed for, the satisfaction she craved.
Chan plunged his hand between her legs. She gasped. She couldn’t move. Zack commanded her breasts while Chan had her trapped with his hand.
“Submitting means that you do everything we say. Not just in the bedroom, but in the rest of your life.” Zack’s blue eyes blazed with a need that was matched by Chan’s gleaming chocolate ones.
“Like you’re dominating me?” A lump came to her throat. She was ready to give in to them in sex, but could she submit to them in all ways? Especially if she didn’t know what either the past or future held?
“Yes.” Zack squeezed her nipples between his thumbs.
“What if I have a job to go back to?”
“You won’t need it any longer. We’ll take care of you.” Chan clenched his jaw, then thrust a finger past her folds and into her pussy.
She inhaled as her body welcomed his touch.
“Do you understand what we’re saying?”
Gone were the gentlemen that had taken care of her. These men were bound to have her. And yet, she knew they would only do so if she allowed them to.
“What about the rest of my life? I don’t know what I’d be giving up.”
Zack raked his teeth along her shoulder and, just as she had with Chan, she had the almost irresistible urge to beg him to bite her.
“Could it be better than this? Than us?”
Chan had a point. Right now all she could think about was giving them what they wanted. Then she’d get what she yearned for.
“Lace, baby, will you submit?”
She couldn’t think straight. Not with their hands and their mouths on her. “Teach me how.”
Chan circled his finger inside her pussy, searching for her sweet spot. “You can start by listening to everything we say. Don’t think about anything except the sound of our voices.”
She found that she liked the idea. “Yes. Please. I want to submit to you.”
She cried out when Chan took his fingers out of her. Then when Zack turned her loose, it was too much to bear. “Nooo. Please, don’t stop touching me.”
“We won’t, baby.” Chan swept her hair away from her cheek and she leaned into his caress. “Let yourself go. Let all the pain and the fear go. Give it over to us to handle. Let us carry that load for you.”
Zack placed a hand on her shoulder then pressed his erect cock against the small of her back. Somehow she hadn’t noticed that he’d gotten undressed, but then her head was a little fuzzy. The drink must’ve hit her hard. It wasn’t the reason she was ready to submit to them. That came from a place deep inside her. No drink could ever make her do something she didn’t want to do.
Chan stepped away and started tugging off his shirt. Her mouth watered at the sight of his
hard chest and when he undid his jeans and shoved them to his bare feet, she couldn’t help but lick her lips. His cock sprang outward, pointing at her and teasing her.
“We’ve got some playthings down here.” Chan motioned toward Zack who had pulled a large rectangular container out from under the couch.
“What’s in the box?”
“Don’t worry. You’re going to like what we have. Just trust us.”
She did trust them. Every bit of her gut, every last sense she had told her she could.
She moaned and reached behind her to try and take Zack’s cock in her hands, but he shifted away from her.
“Not so fast. We do this our way.”
She nodded and waited for Zack to tell her what to do. She didn’t expect him to take her arms and pull them behind her. The strips he put around her wrists were leather, but they were soft and didn’t hurt her skin. Having her arms bound behind her gave her a new feeling of helplessness. Feeling helpless with Zack and Chan made her feel sexy and alive. But that was just it. She could feel helpless with them without actually being helpless. In fact, she felt the exact opposite.
“Get on your knees on the couch.”
Chan motioned for her to do so, then helped her climb on top of the cushion. His cock bobbed up and down, teasing her as she tried not to fall.
“What are you going to do?”
A sting that started in her butt cheek radiated outward. She gasped and fell against the back of the couch as she twisted around to find Zack holding a riding crop.
He lifted a finger to his lips. “Make that your first lesson. Don’t speak unless we tell you to. Or if you’re in pain that you don’t enjoy. Tell me you understand.”
“Yes.”
“Good girl.” Chan eased his body onto the couch in front of her and lay back, propping one leg over the back and the other stretched out beside her. “We should take it easy this time, Zack. We don’t know how experienced she is. Hell, even she doesn’t know.”
Zack whacked the crop against his palm. “Something tells me this will be a lot like riding a bike. If she’s done it before, it’ll come back to her naturally.” He thrust out his chin at Chan. “Suck on him, babe. I want to see you take his cock inside your mouth.”